The Sunshine Sisters

The Sunshine Sisters by Jane Green Book 371 pages

Take one self-centered movie star mother and three neglected daughters and you have a recipe for dysfunction. Ronni Sunshine is so busy being fabulous, that she doesn't realize her home is not the happy one she would like the world to think it is. Her daughters, Nell, the sullen one, Meredith, the insecure one, and Lizzy, the charmed one, have never been close and don't really know how to be. But they will need to get it together because when their mother gets old, she will have something to tell them and they aren't going to like it.

It took me the longest time to finish this book and I'm not altogether sure why. It wasn't a bad plot or bad writing, I think the author did a good job, especially with dialogue. However, the story didn't really pull me in, at least not in a can't put it down kind of way. I wouldn't say the characters were especially likable, but they were real. You could feel the animosity the girls had for their mother and the sadness they felt at not being a real family. Each suffered in their own way from the hurt their mother had unwittingly given them. Also you can feel Ronni's regret at not having treated her daughters better. She lost her husband and her children cringe whenever they hear from her (or from each other), so at the end of her life she just wants to make things right. Overall this was a decent book and I would recommend it to anyone who likes this kind of fiction, but I don't see myself coming back to read it a second time.

The Bane Chronicles

The Bane Chronicles by Cassandra Clare,  Sarah Rees Brennan and Maureen Johnson              Audio Book: 13 Hours, 8 minutes     Hardback Book:   507 pages         

I read once that reincarnation could explain why people are attracted to whom they are, why people sometimes feel trapped in the body they are because they feel the call of a different person inside them.     Magnus Bane has lived for centuries and had various lovers over the course of his life both male and female.    Immortals tend to have that ethereal quality to their personalities they are not limited by mere mortal constraints as to who they bestow their love upon.  Immortality seems to loosen the inhibitions.    Magnus Bane, a warlock is also a fixer.    Magnus can magically alleviate problems, be they historical and epic (think French Revolution) or more mundane (think black outs, bar fights).    He is a true connoisseur  of the good things in life and how to truly give pleasure and love another person.     Magnus is witty and funny sometimes you will laugh out loud while enjoying his tales and believe me in his long life there are many stories and views of historical events that the author will take you right there to the moment where you will feel you are an actual observer and at times almost a voyeur!  J    A fun read and a brilliant introduction to a many faceted character.    After sharing his experiences during Prohibition you will want a Mimosa to toast him with or at the very least a nice fizzy phosphate.    Great character development of all the folks you will meet in this story, lovely history lessons giving you a peek at what it must have been like to be there.    Good stories, great fun and hilarious dialogue whenever Magnus is involved.

Pimp: the story of my life

Pimp: The Story of My Life  by Iceberg Slim           Paperback: 302 pages            

I enjoy reading biographies of people.     Learning all the ins and outs of another person’s life is fascinating.    Learning what happened, what they experienced that has made them who they are.      From his rough childhood with his father who dealt a harsh discipline (hitting him so hard he hit the wall) to a better life with the next man in his mother’s life who treated him with love and respect like a real father only who he dearly loved and cherished the memory of him for the rest of his life only for his mother to leave this good man who treated them well and paid all the bills and gave them both everything they could ever want to go back to the streets with a vile man who told Iceberg when he was a preteen he had better get out or he would kill him.     When a mother chooses her lover over her child there is only one thing that child can do and that is to be raised by the streets and that is what happened to him.     So many dark things were endured by this dear child it is a wonder he made it to become a man.   And it is no wonder that he became hardened to life and did whatever he could to make money.   He learned from the older men on the streets how to turn a woman out to prostitution and how to keep one’s stable of  prostitutes in line and bringing in a steady flow of cash.    Iceberg Slim does not mince his words nor does he make apologies for what he did to survive.    He treated woman with love and hate sometimes simultaneously.    He did stints in prison, he learned to run cons both in the streets and from some of the older cats in the joint.  He was a quick learner and observer of life and how not to let the suckers get over on him nor to let any woman Georgia him, maybe a throw back from his mother taking him out of the one home environment that was stabile and away from the one man who he loved as a father who treated him as his son, at least that is what the prison psychiatrists said.  In later years he tried to live the life of a “Square” even married, had kids, loved his family and tried to make a living for his family.   Unfortunately it wasn’t to be.   He met with adversity every where he turned.   Thinking a career in sales would be right and easy for him (since he had sold women to johns for years) he was articulate and well dressed and fit the part but couldn’t get passed all those white suits that wouldn’t give him the opportunity to show what he could do in the straight world.   So, every time, he had to turn back to hustling to make a living and keep food on the table for his kids.    This was his day to day grind until the time he began to put his life stories down on paper and a new career awaited him as a prolific author.   There were so many stories to tell that Iceberg Slim is the author of many books and has left a legacy of his writing and what the soul can endure and keep on keeping on.   Rest in peace, Iceberg Slim.  

The Family Fletcher Takes Rock Island

The Family FletcherTakes Rock Island by Dana Alison Levy, 259 pages

This is the sequel to “The Misadventures Of The Family Fletcher”.  Sam, Jax, Eli, Frig and their two dads have been coming to Rock Island every summer since they’ve been a family.  Nothing on the island ever changes, which is one of the reasons they like it.  But this year there are a few changes.  One very big change that the family hates is that the lighthouse is closed to the public.  Someone was hurt and now it’s closed pending inspection.  No one is sure what will happen but they can’t bear the thought of it being torn down.  One change that ends up being not so bad is some other kids that are staying nearby this year.  Valerie and Alex seem a little strange at first but may end up being not so bad.  Then there’s a weird artist running around the island.  He might not be too awful but he seems to be up to something.  And there’s an ice cream truck on the island!  At least that’s one change that’s good.  This was a great sequel.  I recommend these books to any school age kid who likes realistic fiction.

The Littlest Bigfoot by Jennifer Weiner

The Littlest Bigfoot by Jennifer Weiner             Audio Book:  6 hours, 41 minutes     Book:   304 p

My favorite part of this book was the language of the the Yairn (Big Foot Tribe).     I love the way Jennifer Weiner brings the reader into their world and how since they are somewhat acclimated to humans and human speech, they have their own way of turning a phrase which I could listen to all day.     The actor Vincent Price has that same affect on me.    Some voices and some dialects and languages are just so mellifluous that they are so sweet and soothing to listen to they are like ear candy.      That is how Millie’s, the Littlest BigFoot of the title, speech is.    She has such a joy to her and a deep sense of herself and her surroundings plus a curiosity that borders on a cat’s and can take her to the edge sometimes in her desire to be like the No-Furs (humans).    Don’t you love that?   No-furs.    Perfect description of how other beings might see us, especially if they had more body hair than most humans like the Yairn do.    In Jennifer Weiner’s story, the Yairn have arrived in the 21st century along with the non-Yairn, they have figured out how to use a laptop and order things online from Amazon.   Not too shabby.    And, there is one television in their encampment in Old Aunt Yetta’s abode and she and Millie have become obsessed with the t.v. show, “Friends.”     Millie is also mesmerized by a singing talent competition show ala “American Idol,” or “The Voice” and she desperately wants to be able to compete on it one day and become a famous singing star.    Millie’s love for the No-Furs way of life is barely tolerated by the rest of the Yairn in the tribe.   They think it is dangerous to their way of life and to their camp.   She is only tolerated because her parents are the leaders of the group.   On the other side of the lake from the Yairn is an alternative lifestyle school run by a couple who open their arms to all students from every background, many of whom have been ostracized or bullied because of their lifestyles or their looks or their proclivities.    Some of the kids come from two Dad homes, or two Mom homes, they like their own gender, one girl has severe allergies, one girl loves to play with swords, every student has in some way been deemed “different” for one reason or another and Alice Mayfair, the other star of the book is heavy and has naturally curly unruly red hair.    Alice has been in so many different schools and is always made to feel she doesn’t fit in.     Her parents are rich and don’t spend a lot of time with her but do try to send her to the best schools each time something goes amiss and she is asked to leave.     Finally, an alternative school in the woods comes on the radar and at first she feels like this one is just more of the same when a thin, Barbie doll pretty girl comes to the school and gets all the boys hanging after her and she starts making fun of Alice for being so big.   Alice tries, but, there is no getting any peace with this girl in the picture.   She equates different with freak and gives all the students except for her minions a hard time for whatever it is about them that makes them unique.      The girl even cajoles Alice into sneaking out and going skinny dipping with her one night.   Alice so wanting to be accepted, does go, only to find the boys took her clothes and the other girl is in on it, is totally dressed and has a camera focused on Alice.   They all taunt her to come out of the water.    Finally she has to and they take her picture and put it up on Facebook.   They even photoshop a picture of a BigFoot  and put it next to her and make copies and they go all over the school grounds to every student.    Alice is humiliated.     The couple running the school find out and bring all parties together for a NO BULLYING lecture.    It doesn’t change things however and Alice begins spending more time alone down by the lake away from the others and that is how she and Millie end up meeting.   The story is funny and dear.   It speaks of how friendships can develop in all sorts of ways and how real friends are friends of the heart and come in all shapes and sizes and how coming from diverse backgrounds just makes life that much more interesting.    There is suspense and drama, battles of good versus evil, betrayal, wrongs and rights and a cliff-hanger ending that tells me this story would make a great film and has left room for the story to continue.    I want it to.

What Did You Eat Yesterday? vol. 1

What Did You Eat Yesterday?, vol. 1, by Fumi Yoshinaga, 200 pages

This is a mash-up of three types of manga that I thought worked really well together- slice-of-life, gay romance, and food.  Combining those three distinct genres made for a really subtle work that didn't feel like any specific one of the genres.  Shiro and Kenji appear to be pretty different- Shiro is a hard-working, serious, closeted lawyer, while Kenji is a fun-loving, openly gay hairstylist.  But what matters the most is that Shiro loves to cook elaborate, thoughtful Japanese dishes and Kenji loves to eat them.  The story here is not much of anything, being a slice-of-life, but there are recipes throughout that sound delicious and it offers a sort of fascinating glimpse into a section of contemporary Japanese culture.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson

Will Grayson, Will Grayson
by John Green & David Levithan, 310 pages

This book's been on my 'too read' list since it came out. After Tiger recently reviewed it, I decided I needed to finally read it. I rarely read young adult novels, but I do enjoy them in general.
The overall story was entertaining and the message being conveyed came through loud and clear. However, I had a couple issues with this book.
1. I really thought the authors tried to cram too many types of characters into one book. Gay, goth, terribly depressed, super fat kid, etc. Maybe it's just me, but I felt they could have spent less effort on that and more on just developing a couple more intricately. 
2. Although the above details were mentioned, there wasn't much to really give you a feel for how the characters looked. Everyone might not care about this, but I like to have a little something to give me a picture in my head of the characters. For some reason, I pictured nothing.
There are so many books out there now for teens that deal with being gay. I don't know if this is because so many teens are coming out or if it was just a niche that needed to be filled, but I think it's a good thing. When I was in high school, there were kids who were gay, but they did not come out until they left high school and the town, for good. I grew up in a very rural area though, so I know this was a factor. I wonder, however, if it might have been a little different if books such as these were accessible for those teens to read and relate to.
Anyway, though I thought a few things could be improved upon, I did still enjoy reading this, and it was a quick read, as teen novels tend to be.

Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography

Neil Patrick Harris: Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris, as shredded and pasted back together by David Javerbaum, 294 pages

Written in the classic YA style of choose-your-own-adventure books, this quirky autobiography offers insight into the various elements of NPH's life, from his work as a child actor (hello, Doogie!) to his career on Broadway (hello, Hedwig!), from his lifelong hobby as an amateur magician to understanding himself as a gay man. And don't forget about all those fun bits concerning Harold and Kumar, and Dr. Horrible, and How I Met Your Mother, and hosting every awards show imaginable.

The book, as is the tradition in choose-your-own-adventure books, is written in second person, with you, the reader, playing the role of the main character (in this case, Neil Patrick Harris) and making choices throughout (for example, to explore your career in made-for-TV movies, turn to page 49; if you'd rather return to the stage, go to page 137). And like any good choose-your-own-adventure book, there are options where you end up dead, or in traction for the rest of your life, or working at the Schlotzsky's counter and living a life of obscurity.

This book was both incredibly fun and incredibly frustrating. On the one hand, it was hilarious, unexpected (who knew you could end up at a crossword puzzle or a cocktail recipe?), and, considering all of the diverse elements of NPH's life, a decent format for his memoir, especially if you only really care about his TV career or his personal life. But if, like me, you want to know about ALL those elements, prepare to read this through a good five or six times. I'll admit that it got to the point, after several read-throughs, where I was simply skimming through, looking for anecdotes I hadn't read yet. I'm also really curious how this translates into an audiobook, which does exist. If you listen to it, please let me know!

Good for fans of Neil Patrick Harris, books with goofy structure, and those who love a good laugh. Not for those who want something straightforward and straight-laced.

Fun Home

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel, 232 pages

When Alison Bechdel was in college, she came out to her parents as a lesbian. A few weeks later, her mother informed her that Alison's father, Bruce, was gay. And a few weeks after that, Bruce died in what was likely a freak accident, though Alison suspects it may have been suicide. Fun Home explores Alison's evolving relationship with her father, both before and after his death, as she attempts to unlock the mysteries of his life.

This memoir is told through Bechdel's detailed drawings and meticulous memoirs, discussing Bruce's life through the literary works that he loved. This is a beautiful, haunting book that opens up as many questions as it answers; it is clear by the end that Bechdel is still working through her childhood relationship to her dad and the influences it had on her early adulthood. There are some pages and panels that may not be appropriate for everyone--Bechdel is frank in her depiction and discussion of sex--though nothing is gratuitous. Otherwise, I highly recommend this memoir.

Mundo Cruel

Mundo Cruel: Stories, by Luis Negron, trans. by Suzanne Jill Levine, 96 pages

In this Lamda Literary Award winning collection of short stories, the setting is Puerto Rico and the storylines vary greatly.  From writing a letter to an old lover for money to get his dog stuffed, to committing a series of horrible crimes in order to cover up a suicide, the only unifying theme here is that of queer culture and identity in Puerto Rico.  The stories range from amusing to heart-breaking.  It's worth a read if you enjoy literary fiction, short stories, or it's the only thing on your e-reader and you are in a doctor's office without wi-fi.  

If You Could Be Mine

If You Could Be Mine, by Sara Farizan, 247 pages

This is an impressive first work of young adult fiction by Sara Farizan, and touches on a subject rarely discussed.  Sahar and Nasrin are two young women in love, but it's an especially dangerous enterprise since they live in Iran, where their love is illegal.  When Nasrin becomes engaged to a young doctor, Sahar sees her world spinning out of control.  By chance, Sahar discovers that even though homosexuality is illegal in Iran, transsexuality is seen by the government as a flaw that they will pay to fix with surgery.   Sahar decides that to keep Nasrin, she should become a man. 

I found the premise suspect, but according to the flawless Wikipedia, this is actually true- Iran offers more gender reassignment surgeries than almost any other country in the world.  It's refreshing to read LGBT fiction for young adults that addresses the "T"- you don't see that too often.  I felt that it was addressed responsibly and with sensitivity. 

The Sweet Revenge of Celia Door

The Sweet Revenge of Celia Door by Karen Finneyfrock, 259 pages

Celia is starting high school and over the summer she went Dark. She is now Celia the Dark and she refuses to let any of the horrible people at school hurt her anymore. She wears black clothes and combat books and always a hoodie. Unfortunately, the horrible people are still there and possibly more horrible than they used to be. Her one place of refuge, English class, is being taught by a teacher who doesn’t seem to get her at all so is miserable instead of wonderful. Her parents, who decided to have a trial separation this summer have been making no moves towards reconciling. The only good thing that has happened is that a new boy started school this year. Drake, from New York, is beautiful and wonderful and Celia feels like she’s found a kindred spirit. But she is afraid to tell Drake her biggest secret, the one that has her seeking revenge, even though Drake has told her his biggest secret. I thought this was a really good book about bullying and friendship that a lot of teens would like.

Two Boys Kissing

Two Boys Kissing by David Levithan, 200 pages

This book follows the story of several different boys. Two boys are Craig and Harry, who used to be a couple but aren’t anymore. They are trying to beat a record for the longest kiss. Two other boys, Avery and Ryan, have just met a dance and are exploring the possibility of being a couple. Peter and Neill are a couple. Peter’s parents support him but Neill’s family is still not sure how they feel about the two boys dating. Another boy, Cooper, is exploring his sexuality online, in chat rooms. When his parents discover what’s happening, Cooper feels like his life is over and sets out on a self-destructive path. These boys’ lives intersect only peripherally but are tied together by a voice that speaks from a common experience. I liked the idea of this book but I’m not sure I really liked the execution. The stories seemed too disjointed to me. Parts of the stories were told well but overall I didn’t like this book a lot. Gay teens who are struggling with their identities or friends of those teens might find the book helpful or interesting but I wouldn’t generally recommend this book.

Five, Six, Seven, Nate!

Five, Six, Seven, Nate! by Tim Federle, 293 pages

This book is the sequel to Better Nate Than Ever. Nate has landed the part of the understudy to E.T. in E.T.: The Musical. He is very excited but really nervous. First of all, he has to leave his best friend, Libby, while he goes to live with his aunt in New York. Rehearsals are about to start and most of the kids seem so much more knowledgeable about what’s actually going on in the theatre. Nate knows a lot about theatre, but he knows about past productions, not much about what happens backstage during a current production. As Nate tries to navigate his way in the Broadway world, he’s also trying to figure out his personal life and how he relates to other people, especially boys. This is a really funny book about growing up. Although Nate’s experience of landing the job in the theatre is not going to happen to most kids or teens, his feelings and struggles with his life make the story relatable. Older kids or young teens might like this story.

The Commitment

The Commitment: Love, Sex, Marriage, and My Family by Dan Savage, 291 pages

Gay marriage is constantly in the news, and it has been for years. Most of the news stories focus on court cases or ballot initiatives or, more recently, states legalizing gay marriage. In The Commitment, Savage focuses gay marriage (and marriage in general) from an angle rarely seen in the news: the personal point of view. At the time the book was published in 2005, Savage and his boyfriend, Terry, had been together for 10 years. They had a six-year-old son who they adopted at birth and everything was stable in their little family. The couple was even planning a huge anniversary party to celebrate their decade together.

But on the subject of marriage (which was not legal for them in their home state at that time; Washington legalized it in 2012), there was disagreement. Savage was afraid that by "formalizing" their relationship, they'd jinx it; Terry didn't want to do anything straight people did and would rather get "property of" tattoos; Savage's Catholic mother surprisingly was pressuring them to tie the knot; and, perhaps even more surprisingly, their son DJ was vehemently against the idea of his two dads getting married, saying that "boys don't marry boys."

This book follows Savage and his family as they wrestle with the idea of marriage. It also sheds a lot of light on Savage's family, both nuclear and extended, as he examines the marriages of his siblings, parents, grandparents, and various aunts, uncles, and cousins. This was a really interesting, insightful book, though there were a few TMI moments (which is to be expected from Savage, who is a syndicated sex-advice columnist). Overall, a good book, especially for those who already support gay marriage (or are at least leaning that way). But those TMI moments make it not for the faint of heart.